A REGENCE GILTWOOD MIRROR

This mirror is an expression of the transition between the Louis XIV and Regence styles. The frame's decoration of meandering twin C-scrolls centered by delicate flowers was popularised by the engravings of Jean Bérain (1640-1711). He was a draughtsman and designer, painter and engraver of ornament, the artistic force in the Royal office of the Menus-Paris du Roi. The Bérainesque style of light arabesques and playful grotesques was an essential element in the Regence style that led to the French rococo. Similar mirrors are illustrated in G. Child, World Mirrors, London, 1999, p. 184-185, ill. 332-335.